


Promises Kept

by fishfingersandjellybabies



Category: Batman (Comics), Robin War (Comics)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-10
Updated: 2016-03-10
Packaged: 2018-05-25 20:42:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6209362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fishfingersandjellybabies/pseuds/fishfingersandjellybabies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The secret was no longer safe, but that didn’t mean the promise was broken, too.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Promises Kept

**Author's Note:**

> ‘Spiritual’ sequel to Safety in Secrets. These kids’ lives are rough, man. Supplemental listening ‘Drop’ and ‘Elements’ by Ludovico Einaudi, and really anything from that Elements album of his.

Jason’s heart was pounding.

It wasn’t supposed to happen this way.

The order was given from somewhere above.

_“Kill them!”_

The Talons didn’t move.

 _“Kill them,”_ The voice hissed. _“Or I’ll kill the boy!”_

 _Fuck_.

“What?” Damian snapped. “What difference would _that_ make?”

“Run.” Jason whispered, grabbing Damian’s hood and pulling him backwards. “Red, you and Robin need to get the hell out of here. Now.”

“Wha…?” Tim stumbled, catching Damian even as Jason threw him into his chest. “And leave you here? To face a hoard of mindless Talons on your own? Sorry, Hood, but that’s going to be a hard _no_.”

“From _both_ of us.” Damian added, scrambling to get out of Tim’s arms. He stepped forward again, in front of Jason. Stared at the Talons. “I don’t understand. Talons aren’t to hesitate. When they’re given an order, they do it. No questions asked.”

“You would know, right, Robin?” Tim droned. If his quip was going to continue, though, it dropped off instantly, when one of the Talons stepped forward.

_Oh no._

“Robin, I’m serious.” Jason tried again. “Get your sassy little _butt_ the hell out of here.”

“No.” Damian countered, already dropping into a fighting stance. “There’s a conversation I’ve been meaning to have with the Court, and I’m not leaving here until I do.”

_Bad, bad. This is very bad._

“Oh, little bird. So unwise.” The faceless voice hummed. “Though, I suppose since you are about to die, it wouldn’t hurt to tell you.”

“Tell me?” Damian shouted. “Tell me _what_?”

_Think, Jason, think._

“That Talon in front of you.” Damian stared up at the one who had stepped forward. “Tell me – does he look familiar?”

“Familiar…”  Damian repeated slowly, even as he dropped his fists, as his eyes darted across the body a few feet in front of him. It was a second or two, but Jason heard Tim gasp behind him. Just a moment before Damian did.

_Gotta go. Gotta go now._

“No…” Damian breathed, stepping _forward_ , and _Jason couldn’t have that_. “No…!”

The Talon’s shoulders slumped, before he slowly raised his hand, and removed his mask.

Dick Grayson looked more or less the same. A little paler, a lot veinier, but yeah. The same. He was sad, though. His eyes already watering, even as he gave his brothers a heartbreaking smile.

“No, no, no…” Damian was repeating, lifting his hands, even as he went to move forward again.

Dick immediately looked over at Jason.

He’d made the promise, after all.

“Does he look familiar, Robin?” The voice repeated. Jason had stopped listening, though. Had gritted his teeth and jumped forward. Ducked down, wrapped an arm around Damian’s torso and threw the child over his shoulder like he was no more than a sack of potatoes.

“No.” Damian kept saying. Shouting now, even as he strained in Jason’s grip. Leaned over his shoulder, reaching for Dick _. “No!”_

“He did this for you.” The voice teased. “He became _this_ to save you, Robin.”

Jason looked at Tim, who seemed dumbstruck. “Red, with me, now!”

He was grateful that Tim automatically listened. Spun on his heel and ran ahead of him.

“Do you remember that day, little bird? That _you_ made us an offer?” The voice continued, and Jason wished he could shut it up. Wished he couldn’t hear it, even if it did work towards drowning out Damian’s sobs. “Well, what no one ever told you, was that we made him a _better_ one.”

“No!” Damian wailed, still reaching, still thrashing. “Grayson! _Grayson!!”_

“His life for yours.” The voice admitted gleefully. “And we’ve always liked him better than you.”

And Jason doesn’t know how, but under the villainous cackling and Damian’s mounting sobs, came a whisper. Like a breeze, or a hum.

_“Thank you, Jason.”_

They made it to a bend, and Jason chanced stopping. Chanced turning, just a little, just to see.

Dick was still watching, his mask still gone. There were tears streaming down his face now, matching Damian’s, who was still trying to get loose.

Suddenly Dick smiled.

It was warm, and loving, but quickly turning malicious.

_“Jason. Promise me you’ll protect him.”_

_“Only until you get yourself out of this mess.”_

And that was exactly what Dick was going to do.

Either that, or get himself killed. And Jason suddenly remembered: Dick Grayson held grudges. Dick Grayson held the _worst_ grudges in the _world_. Especially when you hurt someone he loved.

Especially when you hurt _his_ Robin.

His _kid_.

 _“…I was going to kill them, Jason.” He admitted softly. “I was going to destroy everything about them, down to their souls, for trying to take him. For trying to_ use _him.”_

Dick Grayson hadn’t succeeded in doing that last time.

Dick Grayson didn’t tend to fail twice.

“Grayson!” Damian howled, and Jason was ashamed to say he almost dropped him. “Grayson, _please!”_

Dick was turning towards the other Talons, now. Grabbing the knives off his belt.

Jason needed to get out of there. He needed to get Damian out of there. Now.

“Hood, this way!” Tim called from ahead.

Jason hiked Damian up against his shoulder, and took off.

“No, no!” Damian shrieked. “Go back, go back right now!” A fist against his back. _“Todd, go back right now!”_

“Sorry, kid.” Jason ground out. “But I made Dickie a promise.”

They didn’t go much further, before Jason ducked into an alleyway. Before he dropped Damian onto his butt, dropped to his knees, and loomed over him. Held Damian tight to his chest and curled around him, blocking the child from view. Tim stood behind Damian, weapon at the ready to protect them both. He stared out of the alley, and even as he squeezed his eyes shut, Jason knew Tim couldn’t see anything.

They could hear it, though.

The squelch of blood, the pounding of fists. The grunts of pain, the shouts of dying.

“No.” Damian repeated, softer now. Barely a whisper, as he curled into Jason’s chest. He was shaking now, and Jason just tried to hold him tighter. “…No.”

“Hood.” Tim breathed. “Was…was what that voice said…was it true?”

Jason swallowed the lump in his throat. “…Yeah.”

“I did this.” Damian reasoned. And fuck, the kid was smart. The kid was fast. _“I did this to him-”_

“He did it to himself.” Jason cut off, squeezed Damian tighter. Held the back of his head. “He did it to himself because he loves you, and that’s not your _fault_. Okay?”

“He’s breaking his morals. He’s killing, for _me_ , and-” Damian gasped. His legs jerked. “He’s going to _die_ , because of _me_ and-”

“Shhh.” Jason soothed, found himself rocking, as if Damian were a baby, and this was all just. Surreal. “Don’t think about it, kid.”

Suddenly, there was a screech in the air. A cry of battle or a cry of pain, and Jason couldn’t figure out which.

Tim shifted, moved to Jason’s side. “Was that…” He whispered. “Is he…?”

Jason just repeated. “Don’t think about it, kid.”

There was a second of silence, then the shifting of fabric. The collapse of a cape, and Tim was instantly in their huddle. Wrapping his arms tightly around Damian’s back, around Jason’s shoulders, burrowing his face in Damian’s hair.

Damian continued to sob.

They stayed like that, for a while. Jason counting the seconds, waiting until he could be sure that the coast was clear. That either the Talons were dead or that they themselves were hidden well enough away not to be found.

When he looked up towards the sky, it was just for something to do. He didn’t expect someone to be up there, staring back.

The silhouette was Dick – it could be no one else. Jason would recognize that mop of hair anywhere. Just as he would recognize the shape of blood dripping off fingertips anywhere, too.

Dick moved forward, seemed to be about to jump down, join them in their emotional pile. But then suddenly he halted, and stepped back again.

This mess wasn’t over.

Dick Grayson wasn’t coming home.

(And maybe he never would. Maybe he believed himself too tainted, now, for this family. Too unworthy of their love and forgiveness. Or maybe this was just the last glimpse of him, before he crawled off to die somewhere, alone. Jason recognized the blood dripping from his hands, but he couldn’t recognize _whose it was._ )

Dick turned, and the sun hit his face. His eyes practically glowed, and Jason could see that they were worried. Concerned. Pleading.

_Just a little while longer, Jason. Please._

It wasn’t over yet. Dick Grayson wasn’t free.

Therefore Damian wasn’t safe.

Jason exhaled through his nose. Held Damian tighter. Leaned his chin on Tim’s head. Nodded.

Dick smiled. Sad, wistful. Looked at Damian and Tim one more time, then spun away. Disappeared behind the ledge of the roof.

The Talon was gone.

And Jason was left to pick up the pieces.


End file.
